


The Girl Who Cried Wolf

by TaleFairy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-19
Updated: 2019-12-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:22:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21857518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TaleFairy/pseuds/TaleFairy
Summary: Periwinkle Granbell doesn't talk to anyone but her cat, Mya.She has been quiet for the past eight years, and she intends to keep it that way.It's not because she's shy, unlike everyone thinks... Well, not only because of that.Her past scares her every night, and the things she saw, the things she has done... Those things keep her from talking, from bringing anyone into her mess.This year is her fifth year at Hogwarts, no friends, no fun, only a good book and her small black cat. That is, until she meets him.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Remus Lupin/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 5
Collections: Harry Potter Favs, Harry Potter Fic, Marauders, Marauders Era, marauders





	1. Back Home

"Fifth Year Students! This way!"

I stand up, grabbing Mya, my small black cat, and the book I was currently reading.

As I'm walking, I notice not much has changed while everyone was on vacation. Little Nymphadora Tonks was following Lily Evans around, as Lily was her role model; James Potter couldn't take his eyes off Lily, and the Marauders kept teasing him about it.

I smile to myself, even though I had an awful summer, I'm glad everyone else's was different.

I caress the sweet Thestral that pulls my transportation and thank it, before jumping through the stairs of the Carriage, sighing as I see everyone else gathering with their friends, while I'm here all alone.

You see, being alone is not exactly something I'm not used to, that's not the case. When you give up talking, it's not really easy to make friends but it's easier to protect everyone else from what you are.

As soon as Mya and I sit down, the Thestral starts moving, and I rest my back on the wood bench, glancing up at the stars.

I hold the vile of Wolfsbane tightly against my hand, in two weeks there'll be the first full moon, and I want to be prepared for whatever is out there. Call me crazy, but I don't like to leave home without something to protect myself, or, in this case, to protect everyone else from those furry beasts.

The carriage stops and I walk down, Mya snuggling closer to me and letting out a sweet 'meow'. I smile at her. "You know you can't come with me," I tell her and she looks up at me. "I'll see you at the dorms, okay?" I caress her fur before letting her down, watching as she runs up the large stairs of the castle, heading to the Gryffindor Common Room.

When I was eleven and got sorted into Gryffindor, my mother yelled at me for an entire hour.

She called me of all sorts of things and even said she wished I was never born. Of course, that hurt me, but I didn't say a word, for I already knew that was the case. You see, my mother is a proud Ravenclaw, just like my father, and, even though they can't stand looking at me, I think they still hoped I was smart like them, and somehow being sorted to Gryffindor means to them that I'm dumb, which I'm not.

I don't really know why the Sorting Hat selected me to Gryffindor. I'm not brave, and I'm certainly not a hero. I barely speak. I'm always focused on my grades, and, for the record, they were always the best. At least my parents can't get mad at me for that.

I shake my head, trying to get rid of those thoughts and walk to the Great Hall, a small smile coming to my face as I feel the scent of food hitting my nose. I adjust my clothes to hide my scars, then walk quietly to an invisible spot at the Gryffindor table. I sit with my head down, knowing no one has noticed me, so there's nothing to worry about.

The Dinner is interrupted by loud laughs coming from the doors, which causes everyone to look that way. I try my best not to, because I already know who's there.

The Marauders walk to the Gryffindor table, laughing loud at some private joke. They sit in front of my seat, and I mean literally, making me want to change seats. I don't need to, though, because a tall girl from Slytherin pushes me to the side and takes my spot, her eyes glancing at Sirius Black with a mean smirk on her lips. Sirius looks back at her, throwing her a wink before continuing to focus on his food. She blurts out a giggle that makes me deeply uncomfortable and I look down at my plate. "So, Sirius..." She starts and he looks at her, one eyebrow raised and a smirk on his lips. The other Marauders stand there, carefully listening to the conversation, and I have no other choice but to listen as well. "I was wondering if..."

"Not interested, but thank you." He says and smiles lightly at her, making the girl's jaw drop, and her cheeks turn red, as she walks off, back to her table. The Marauders laugh again, James playfully punching Sirius arm. I feel bad for her as I watch her sit with her friends, a mixture of sadness and confusion on her face. 

"Smooth, mate." James says and Peter nods, agreeing. 

There always was something about them that intrigued me, maybe it's the fact that I know everything about most people in Gryffindor, and some of other houses, and I know almost nothing about them, apart from some superficial details everyone talks about.

You see, when you are so quiet like me, people don't even bother checking if you're listening or not, they simply start talking, as if I'm not there, as if I don't exist. It doesn't bother me.

As an example, I know that Narcissa Black has a thing for Lucius Malfoy and that he's just playing with her heart. I also know that Lily Evans thinks she's tricking everyone by pretending she feels nothing for James Potter, when, actually, she does. But I understand her, though. James is an idiot and Lily is really sweet to everyone, even to Severus Snape, who called her a Mudblood last year. They're not friends anymore, but she's still nice to him. Why? I'll never know.

I don't bother looking at the kids who join us for their First Year, because I know they're as terrified as I was on my first year, but I can't say much has changed since. A little brunette girl sits next to me and starts helping herself. For a first-year, she eats a lot, and I'm not the only one who notices. "Slow down, little one." I hear James saying, causing the girl to look up and blush, handing him a nervous smile. He smiles back, and the other guys wave at her, all but Remus, whose head was buried in a book.

I smile, every time I look at him, he's reading something different. Not that I look at him a lot, but still. His eyes meet mine for a second, and I look down, my black fluffy hair now covering my red cheeks like a curtain I'm used to hiding myself behind. It's not easy to see when I'm blushing, because of my darker skin, but sometimes it's pretty easy to tell when I'm uncomfortable. Like right now. I stare at my plate for a while, still feeling his eyes on me as I eat, thank god for peripheral vision, but... _Why isn't he looking away?_

"Students may now follow the House Prefect and walk to their respective Dorms. Have a nice year, kids." Dumbledore's voice tells us and I quickly get up, walking off the Hall.   
I hear the Marauders behind me, James is trying to convince Lily to go out with him, as always, and Sirius is talking to some sixth-year girl who's shorter than him.

I walk with my head down, stopping as the Prefect starts talking to the Fat Lady. "Listen to me, kids!" He says and I roll my eyes, he's a sixth year, not a Professor. "You shall not tell anyone that's not from your own House the password. And, please, try not forgetting it." He says and then finally tells us the words. _Lion Claw._

I walk into the Common Room, a warm feeling filling my heart as I see nothing has changed, and start walking to the girl's dorms when I bump into something. "Oh, I'm sorry." The low voice says, making me look at the source. I blush madly. It's not something, it's someone. And it's not just anyone, it is Remus Lupin, the Marauder. "I'm really sorry. I'm Remus, you are?" He says, his hand out for me to shake.

I look at his hazel eyes, my body shivering as he stares at me. I see the other Marauders behind us, whispering to themselves. I open my mouth, but no sound comes out, so I just stare at him, petrified. I hear someone laughing behind me and turn around to see Sirius Black with a hand over his mouth. I look down, not glancing at Remus as I walk fast to the girl's dorms.   
  
_Remus Lupin's POV_

I frown as the short black-haired girl walks away, not even bothering to look back at me. James and Sirius laugh. "Nice, Moony." James says and I roll my eyes.

"Do you know who she is?" I ask Sirius, he knows every single girl from our year, but he shakes his head. 

"Never seen her before. Have you?" He asks and I shake my head. I've certainly never seen her before, otherwise, I would remember.

"Hm, does little Moony fancy the Mystery Girl?" James teased, punching my arm playfully.

"Shut up, you know I can't date." I say looking at the ground. 

"Oh, come on." James says rolling his eyes. "We're not going through this again, are we? You deserve to love, Moony. Like everyone else." Sirius and Peter nod, agreeing with James. 

"Forget it. I'm not ready for it, you guys have no idea of how hard it is." I mumbled, shaking my head as I look to the entrance of the girl's dorm, my thoughts flying to the Mysterious Girl that just ignored me. She was adorable, her black hair fell on her face in messy curly locks, and even though I could only see her dark eyes for a second, I knew they were beautiful. She intrigued me greatly.

Sirius rolls his eyes and drags us to our dorm, closing the door and pushing me on my bed, the one far from the door, as always. "Moony, you can't spend your whole life thinking that no girl will ever love you because of your little... Problem." Sirius says and James agrees, both folding their arms as they look down at me.

"Little problem? Is that what you call it? I'm a bloody monster. I don't even know why you guys still waste your time with me." I say, glancing at the ceiling.

"Hey, don't say that." Peter finally said. "We're your friends, we're not going anywhere." 

"The mouse is correct." Sirius says, sitting next to me. "We're not going anywhere. Anywhere but to find out what's that girl's name and give you a little help." He says smirking. 

I roll my eyes, this won't be good.


	2. Grapefruit

The sunlight wakes me up before Mya has the chance to. I get up, rubbing my eyes and looking around, searching for my glasses. When I finally find them, I have to blink a couple of times until I realise where I am, and that acknowledgement comes with the sound of another person snoring. That's when it hit me, our Head Girl, Anastasia Sheld, told me that - unfortunately - there weren't any girls on my year willing to share a room with me, since they have already gathered their friends, but, for some reason, I ended up stuck with Lily Evans.

Now don't get me wrong, Lily is a very sweet girl (sometimes a little too much for my liking), but she's _very_ talkative. I had an entire evening of her telling me about going to Egipt with Nymphadora, and, honestly, all I wanted to do was sleep. Then, of course, she asked me why I never talked to anyone on our year, and, instead of explaining her my story (which would take too long, and, again, even though she's sweet, I don't exactly trust her), I just shrugged and wrote _Good Night_ on a piece of parchment before jumping into my pyjamas and going to bed.

I can't deny that Lily was very comprehensive about my situation, for she didn't ask again, she only did the same I did, then turned off the lights before muttering a sweet 'Good Night'.

When I woke up, though, there was nothing sweet about the way she was sleeping.

Half her body was hanging off the bed, her fiery hair was a big mess, and she was snoring loud, really loud. But then again, I can't say anything, because I was looking pretty messy myself, with my once curly black hair (that changed to a soft blue overnight) falling messier than usual on my shoulders, and a fillet of dry drool on my chin, I wasn't exactly the face of beauty. Not that I had ever been.

I look at the clock and roll my eyes, breakfast had begun about ten minutes ago, so I wasn't that late. I glance at Lily before looking at Mya. "Don't wake her up, I think she can use a few more minutes of sleeping." I whisper and Mya meows softly before snuggling on my pillow again, making me giggle as I take my shower towel, my shampoo and my conditioner.

One thing I hate about mornings: Showering. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a dirty person or anything like that, but every time I close my eyes, I can see myself in the lake, nine years ago, fighting for air as the water shakes around me, without being able to control my own powers or my own thoughts. Every time I have to close my eyes, I'm dragged to that scene. I can hear the screams, my mother running, and them... Those furry beasts. I can hear them, howling, calling their 'friends'... Ready to take a life. To ruin a life.

I open my eyes, only to find the warm and salty tears rolling through my cheeks. I take a deep breath and clean them out, before turning off the shower and stepping off the beautiful glassy box. I look around to pick my towel, glancing at the bathtub for a couple of seconds. I shake my head as I think about why did they also put a bathtub on every room, maybe some students like to relax as their morning routine, but, as I said, I already freak out in the shower, so sitting in a hole full of water is not really my thing.

I wrap the towel around me and step out of the bathroom, only to find a very messy Lily Evans yawning and rubbing her eyes, Mya snuggling on her lap. "Very smart, that cat of yours." Lily says, smiling lightly as she tries her best to stand up. "Thanks for letting me sleep, by the way."

I hand her a small smile and nod, walking to my bed to starting to dress up. "So, I'm going to take a shower... Can you wait a couple minute so we can go have breakfast together?" She asks and I bite my lip.

Walking with Lily Evans to Breakfast? What's wrong with that, right? Well, maybe the wrong part is that she's the most popular girl in our year, and I'm... Awkward. I don't want people seeing us together and assuming we're besties now, but it's hard to say no to her, especially when you have no friends and you don't speak. And the good part is that I don't even need to talk, because she'll feed the conversation, and I only need to nod and smile, maybe occasionally laugh.

So that's what I do, I nod quickly and give her a small smile. "Okay, see you in a couple minutes." She says before disappearing through the wooden door that leads to the bathroom. 

I take her exit as a chance to take the towel off my curly blue hair, and close my eyes, trying to make it come to dark brown again. Not many people have seen me change hair colours (only my mother, Mya, and Dumbledore), and they've only seen it because they know about my... Condition.

When Dumbledore first found out, he thought I was a Metamorphmagus, like Nymphadora Tonks. It took him a couple hours to find out what I actually am, and he swore he wouldn't tell anyone. In Dumbledore's eyes, of course, my condition means I'm not only 'different', but 'special', and he doesn't see any problem with it. But he wouldn't know, right? He's not me.

After a couple of minutes, I can make my hair go back to normal, and right in time, because Lily actually takes only a couple minutes in the shower. She smiles as she sees me. "You look really pretty today, Peri." She says and I blush, looking at the ground. "Though I could've sworn that your hair was black..." She frowns and I mentally hit myself.   
I completely forgot, my hair was actually black last night, it was black during the whole trip, because of my stupid fight with my mother, right before I left home. I felt broken, sad, alone. Hence, black. "Well, I guess I wasn't really paying attention. Sometimes I see things that aren't actually there." Lily says, chuckling and shooting me a wink. I smile and mentally sigh in relief. "So, your cat, how old is she?" I bite my lip before showing her three fingers, and I'm happy that she didn't ask about me not speaking again. "Three? How cute. Can I know her name?" She asks casually and I take the same parchment I've used last night, writing _Mya_ and showing it to her. "Mya, huh?" She smiles and caresses Mya's fur. "Well, I think we'll be good friends, Mya. As will we, Peri." She says shooting me a warm smile.

What's wrong with Evans? Why does she feel the need to be sweet to... Everyone? I've never even talked to her (literally). I don't know why, but her sudden sweetness makes me happy. Maybe because she just said we'll be friends, and, now that I think about it, I could really use a friend.

To be honest, I don't think I've ever seen the Common Room completely empty, and today was not an exception. With all this 'Back to School' thing, people get really excited and want to tell their friends all the things they've done during summer. I looked around to spot Molly Prewet and her sisters talking to some seventh-year boy about their vacation and said seventh-year couldn't be happier staring at Molly's breasts when she giggled. But I don't think Arthur Weasley was so happy watching this scene from afar, while talking to his mates.

That's another thing I don't understand about boys. They tell you to be skinny, thin, but then they want you to have huge breasts and a big ass, I mean, is that even possible? To Lily, and a majority of upper-class Slytherin girls, it seemed to be.

I've never been proud of my own body, maybe because I'm too skinny, and taller than most girls I know (although Lily is the same height as I am), and to complement that, I also have no sign of a 'hot body', because I'm still waiting for mother nature to send me some curves. Sometimes I think that other girls have more curves because they eat more, but my mother always says that doesn't matter what I do, I'm never going to be as beautiful as she was when she was my age. Guess I just lost her perfect DNA in the uterus, oops?

As I try my best not to be crushed between people's PDA while walking, Lily is endlessly talking about her trip to Egypt, again. But, this time, she's focused on the historical part, and I'm grateful for it, because I think Egypt has one of the most beautiful cultures in the world, and I am happy to listen. At least until I hear wolf-whistles coming from the other side of the room.

"Hello, ladies, how are you in this beautiful morning?" A low, strong voice asked us, and I blushed madly as I looked up to face no one but Sirius. Fucking. Black. And don't think I'm misplacing the use of the word 'fucking', because if you knew how many girls have been on his bed, you would be shocked that he hasn't contracted any STD yet. Or maybe he has. Well, that's something I'll never know.

"Get out the way, Black." Lily says in an annoyed voice. 

"Angry this early, huh, Evans? C'mon, you should try to smile a little bit more, considering you get to enjoy my amazing presence." He says and smirks down to her. Even being as taller as me, and that's, like, between 165cm and 168cm (and, believe me, that's taller than 3/4 of the girls in our Year), obviously, Sirius is taller than us. I would say he's probably 175cm, which is a lot, because James is also around 175cm-176cm, while Remus is around 180cm-182cm and Peter is about 163cm. But that's not important right now.

I glance at my shoes as a couple of girls from sixth-year walk pass us, shooting Lily a sweet smile and eyeing me bottom to top, I blush and wait until they're gone to finally look up, only to find Sirius eyes on me. "And who may this be?" He asks and I look at Lily, asking her to save me with my eyes.

"None of your business, Black." Lily snaps and Sirius grins.

"I've never seen her around, so just asking, chill, Evans." 

"Well... She's my roommate, that's all you need to know." She rolls her eyes. "Anything else?" 

"A name." He smiles and looks at me. "I'm sure you can speak for yourself."  
I bite my lip and sigh, making Lily's eyes go wide, because she probably thinks I'm going to talk. But I don't give up that easily, so I look around, spotting a piece of parchment and some ink on a table near us. I take my wand and write _Why would_ you _want to know?_ , then walk back to them and show the parchment to Sirius. He shows me a wide smirk in return. "Can't a guy ask the name of a pretty girl?" He asks me and I open my eyes widely, glancing at Lily, without a clue of what to say. Thankfully, Lily always has something to say.

"We're late for breakfast." She says, taking my arm and waving quickly at Sirius. "See you later, Black." 

Sirius smiles as we walk away, turning around and laughing before yelling. "I hope so!" 

Well, I don't.

Having breakfast with Lily Evans was not completely horrible, mostly because she introduced me to some friends, like Alice J., a girl in our year that has a thing for a guy called Frank Longbottom. I don't really know anything about Frank, but Alice couldn't shut up about their first date. Not that I have anything against it, it's good to know that someone is interested in filling the conversation.

As Alice was talking, Lily and I listened carefully to every single word, while Lily shoved big pieces of bacon into her mouth, and I cut a grapefruit, wondering how Evans can eat that much, and still look so...

"Hot." I hear someone saying, and turn my head to face the Marauders, sitting in front of us. Well, I was going to say beautiful, but that's a good word too, right? "You know what they say, right, Lily? You are what you eat. And I think bacon is a pretty h-" 

"Enough, Potter. I'm trying to eat, if you can't see." She hisses and I roll my eyes, staring at my food. 

Seriously? You are what you eat? That's his big pick up line? No wonder Lily hasn't give him a chance... 

"So, Mysterious Lady, is that all you're going to eat?" I hear a voice saying as someone sits next to me and I look up, facing Sirius Black's smirk. What does he want with me?

"Actually, I don't think she should eat anything. There's no food in the world capable of changing that face of hers." A loud and eerie voice says, making my cheeks burn as I already know who's talking.

Khalia Tonks, daughter of Andromeda and Ted Lupin, relative of Sirius Black and Nymphadora's Sister. I never knew a Hufflepuff could be that mean until I met her. She's my personal nemesis. Well, that's what she likes to call herself. She claims that making my life hell is her only job here at Hogwarts, but the poor thing doesn't know that my life is already hell, especially when I'm home. Also, doesn't matter how many things she says to 'bring me down', every single one of her words was already said, by my sweet, caring, loving mother.

Even so, I keep my head down, promising myself that I won't cry in front of anyone. They'll never see me cry. 

The best thing to be done now, which is the decision I take, is to get up, and run.

The First Floor Girl's Lavatory is the only place I think about when my legs are running around the castle. I know that no girl is allowed there since is Moaning Myrtle's 'home', so it's the only place where they won't follow me. Well, at least I wish they won't.

I clean my face with some water, trying to smile at the girl in the mirror. "Rough day?" A pitchy voice asks me and I nod, looking up to see a small girl, a little younger than me, with pigtails and a sarcastic smile. "It's only your first day, sweet cheeks. Come on, you're alive! Everything else is just bullshit." She says and I laugh, nodding quickly.

I look into the mirror again, smiling as I see the sculpted snake on the polished marble. Some moss has accumulated between the cracks on the marble, but it still looks beautiful.

Unlike me. 

I shake my head as my hands rush through my body. What the fuck am I? A monster, a freak, someone hated by everyone and everything. What would Sirius Black want with me? What would anyone want with me? I look like a pig. 

I hear Myrtle sighing as she floats away from a bathroom door. "Go ahead, I can't make you stop, can I?" She shrugs and I feel tears falling off my eyes again, as I rush to the toilet, shutting the door and kneeling in front of the toilet.


	3. Mute People

I met the Moaning Myrtle on my first day at Hogwarts. I was wandering around the halls when the stairs brought me to this floor, and, taken by a sudden wish to explore, I took my chances and entered the bathroom, guarded by a 'don't disturb' board.

Myrtle smiled at me and offered me a seat next to her, which I declined because I didn't really want to sit on the sink. She shrugged and we started talking about our lives, well, more like she started talking about her life and I just listened. She told me about the secret passage, the basilisk and Tom Riddle, an old Hogwarts student, I was scared, I admit, but using a little bit of parseltongue I was able to open the passage. I never dared to enter, though, for awakening the Basilisk wasn't something I wanted on my conscience.

Years passed and my friendship with the ghost only grew, in fact, I even said a few words to her in year 3, but that was the last time I've spoken to her.

After a while, when I started developing my... Habits, Myrtle was the first, and only one, to try and stop me. I didn't, and I assume that's why she doesn't even try to stop me anymore. 

"I'll see you around, then." She says, waving as I make my way out of the bathroom and back to my dorm. 

After what it seemed to be a few minutes of walking alone, I hear loud footsteps and a very tired Lily Evans smiles at me. "Hey! I was looking for you, are you okay?" She asks, putting a hand on my shoulder. I smile and nod. "Are you sure?" I nod again. "Okay, then." She smiles, saying the password to open the door, unfortunately for the Fat Lady, who doesn't seem to be able to shut up. "So, what's your first class?" She asks as we enter the common room, not many people in there with the exception of the Marauders, who for some reason seem to be always there. I grab the same note pad I used earlier and write Potions on it, passing it to her. "Really? Cool, we have the same class schedule!" She smiles as I try not to look up at the Marauders and we make our way to our dorm.

As we walk in, I gather everything I need and put on my backpack, yawning as I wait for Lily to gather her things. "May I see your class Schedule?" She asks and I nod, handing it to her. Her eyes pop. "Dear Merlin! That's a lot!" I giggle, nodding in agreement. 

After knowing that we could choose our Electives and Extra-Curriculars, I quickly started applying to all of my favourites. As Electives, I chose Alchemy, Care of Magical Creatures, Divination and Study of Ancient Runes. I didn't think Muggle Studies would be ideal for me, because I already have a fair knowledge about them, and Arithmancy doesn't really seem like my thing.

As about Extra-Curriculars, I choose Ancient Studies, Art, Ghoul Studies, Magical Theory and Music. Even though I do know that it consumes most my time, I like to think that even though I'm not smart enough for Ravenclaw, I still have a Ravenclaw heart. 

"Music?" Lily says curiously. "You play something?" I nod, writing Piano and Violin on a piece of paper. "Really?" She smiles and I nod, writing down 'I used to sing when I was younger, too'. "Oh... Well, I'm sure you were good. Don't you take any time for yourself?" I shake my head and write 'My parents were Ravenclaws, they think I'm dumb because I'm a Gryffindor, I'm proving them wrong.' She nods. "I understand. Well, judging by what the teachers usually say, you are succeeding in your mission. I'm sure you're in the Top 5." She smiles.

As we walk out with our schedules and supplies, we see the Marauders preparing to do the same. James quickly walks to Lily, an arm snaking around her shoulders, and her unhappy face seems to be enough to scare a dragon, but he doesn't take the arm off, instead, starts a happy conversation that Lily chooses to ignore. Sirius on the other side, pushes me closer to Remus and him, smiling down at me. "Hey there." He says. I try to walk faster but he grabs my arm. "I don't bite, beautiful, I just want to hear your voice." 

"Leave her alone, Black." Lily says quickly stepping in between us. 

"Sorry, Evans, no can do. Just trying to get to know the little one better. I'm actually working on an experiment about mute people." He laughs and I blush, quickly walking as fast as I can to the Potions room.

What the hell does he want with me?


	4. Potions

Potions.

Thank Merlin, finally a class where I could just study in peace and didn't need to say anything. 

I smile at Professor Slughorn, who always saves me a seat in front of his desk, by request of professor Dumbledore, I imagine.

I sit down, open my book and start preparing my equipment. Glancing aside, I see Severus and James arguing, probably about Lily. I kinda pity Snape, the rumours say that they were friends since very young, but all of a sudden he became this huge asshole, and I'm sure there must be a reason for it. After all, no one just becomes evil from night to day, life makes them that way.

I'm afraid I don't know much about Snape, he talked to me a few times, was quite gentle actually, but I never heard anything about him while listening to people's conversations, well, nothing but rumours and mean comments about Slytherin, I suppose.

"Okay everyone, sit down." Professor Slughorn says firmly, and, as always, everyone quickly obeys. I take my quill and dip the tip in ink, waiting for Slughorn to start. I look beside me and am glad to see no one is sitting there. Good. No awkward conversation. "Today we will be preparing a-" He suddenly stops. "Yes, mister Black?" He raises an eyebrow. 

I look behind me to find a very excited Sirius raising his hand like a maniac. "Professor Slughorn, Moony, I mean, Remus is having some trouble focusing here in the back. I think his eyes might be suffering a bit. Perhaps he could move to the front?"

Great. 

"Sure, sure. Mister Lupin is one of my best students I wouldn't want him to lose focus. You can sit right beside Miss Granbell here." He says with a smile.

That's... That's a joke, right? 

Are the Marauders planning on kidnapping me or some shit? Dear Merlin! 

I try not to act too weird as Remus uses his wand to bring his equipment and books to the other side of my desk, focusing on Professor Slughorn and waiting for him to talk again.

Remus starts organizing his stuff, almost dropping a knife as he does. I pick it up in time, handing it to him with the most normal smile I can produce. "Uh...." He says. "Thank you." He finishes, his cheeks burning. I chuckle and he looks at me with wide eyes. Oh, yes, chuckling counts as speaking to some people.

Professor Slughorn looks at me with both eyebrows raised before looking at Remus and giving him a thumbs up. Which makes me smile and look down, shaking my head. "Very well, as I was saying, today we will work with the Draught of Living Death. Can someone tell me what it is?" I smirk, I know this one! My mother showed me how to prepare a few advanced potions before I started Hogwarts, she wanted me to have an advantage. I also know that the book is not exactly correct when it comes to this potion, for some things can be adapted.

I quickly write some stuff on a piece of parchment and poke Remus. He looks down at me with curiosity as I hand him the parchment and write 'read it out loud' on the top. He nods and raises his hand. "Yes, Mister Lupin?"

Remus cleans his throat before starting. "The Draught of Living Death is a Potion that brings upon its drinker a very powerful sleep that can last indefinitely, kind of like a fake-death. This draught is very dangerous if not used with caution." He says.

Professor Slughorn smiles and nods. "10 Points to Gryffindor. Very well, Mister Lupin." 

"Huh... Actually, Mister Slughorn, I just read Miss Granbell's answer." Remus says and I blush. 

"Oh, I see. She asked you to read it is that correct?" Slughorn asks and Remus nods. "Well, then, 5 more points for you, Miss Granbell." 

I smile, looking up at Remus and writing 'THANK YOU!' on a parchment. He chuckles. "You're welcome."

I look at him one last time before I start my potion, he has beautiful green eyes and light brown hair. He also has mysterious scars over his pink plump lips, not that they make him ugly or anything, he's very beautiful, but still, I've always wondered what happened to him, maybe he had an accident when he was a kid? Yeah, maybe.

I shake my head as he looks down at me with a gentle smile, blushing for being caught staring. I sigh, time to start the Potion. 

I look around to see if anyone's started, Severus seems to be having a hard time with his Sopophorous. I shake my head and fly a piece of parchment to him, it says: 'Crush them, it'll give you much more juice. And use 13, not 12, better effect.' 

He looks at me weirdly before putting the note on his book and cutting the sopophorous, I shake my head. Okay, if he doesn't want to listen is his own fault.

I start by carefully adding the infusion of wormwood, then powder the root of asphodel before adding it to the cauldron, I stir the potion with a wooden spoon for about five minutes, clockwise, before adding sloth brain, a highly gross substance to deal with.

I wait until it is completely dissolved, before grabbing 13 sopophorous beans and starting to crush them with my dagger, I look to my side and notice Remus' eyes on my moves, he comes closer to me. "You're supposed to cut them." He says.

I ignore the shivers that run down my spine and the blush that creeps on my cheeks as I write a note to him. 'My mother is pretty good with Potions, she taught me the right way to do this one when I was 10, trust me, Moony'. I scratch the 'Moony' and write 'Remus' instead, not knowing if we had enough intimacy for me to call him that way. I hand it to him and he smiles, nodding.

"You can call me Moony, you know." He says. "I mean, write... I mean, sorry." He blushes and I smile, putting a hand on his arm as if saying 'it's okay'. He seems to calm down and we both go back to our work. "Hum..." He starts. "I don't want to distract you from your work, but I only know your last name..." He says.

I nod slowly, writing 'My name is Periwinkle. But you can call me Peri.'; he smiles. "Peri, then."

I finish crushing the beans and put the juice on the potion. I wait for it to dissolve, then start stirring again. Seven times, anti-clockwise, then one more clockwise. 

Finally, ten minutes later, the potion is ready. I look at Severus one more time, his hair is all poofy for the first time, and I'm not the only to notice, for James can't stop making jokes. He stops once Professor Slughorn threatens to take five points off our house. 

I shyly raised my hand, waiting a few seconds until Slughorn's eyes fall on me. "Yes, Miss Granbell?" I point at my cauldron. "Finished, already? Oh, well, let's see what you did." He gets up and walks to me, these moments are always exciting, and today, even more, because I don't usually finish first. He takes a silver spoon and puts it on my potion, he stares at the light green liquid for a while before smiling. "Absolutely perfect, Miss Granbell! 20 Points for Gryffindor!" I smile, looking at a very shocked Severus. I wink at him before looking at Remus, who looks rather impressed.

"Congratulations!" Remus says with a smile before looking back at his Potion, I bite my lip as I see he's still at the middle, still dealing with the sloth brain.

I grab the piece of parchment I used earlier. 'Want some help?' I poke him and he reads it, a smile spreading on his face. 

Dear Merlin, what a smile. 

Wait, what? No, help him, help him that's what I have to do. 

'I'll deal with the brain, start crushing the sopophorous. Crushing, Moony.' I write and he nods. 

"Crush it, got it. With the dagger right?" He asks and I nod, handing my dagger to him. He seems quite hesitant with it and I frown, why would he be hesitant? It's just a silver dagger. 

'You can use yours if you want' I write and he smiles, grabbing the brass dagger and starting to crush the beans. 

I shake my head and shrug, starting to focus on the Sloth brain. I prepare it and put it in the cauldron, looking at him as he finishes with the 12 beans. I take my dagger and crush one more, putting it on the cauldron. "I suppose you know what you're doing?" He says and I nod. "Okay, then." He says putting the rest of the juice. "Stir seven times anti-clockwise." He reads it and I nod. 

'Then one more clockwise' I write.

He starts stirring and I glance at the clock, 20 minutes, perfect. As he finishes, we wait ten minutes and he raises his hand, waiting as Slughorn finishes judging the rest of the potions before coming to his. Slughorn's eyes fall on Remus' scars for a second, and they share a weird look as Slughorn glances at the birds on the wall or the potions. Well, for all I know he could be looking at the calendar, who knows.

Slughorn then starts judging Remus' potion, a smile coming to his face as he congratulates Remus and winks at me, I blush.

As the class comes to its end, Remus looks down at me. "So, huh... What's your next class?" He asks.

'Divination' I write. 

"Really? Mine too! Can I walk with you?" He asks. 

I blush, biting my lip as I get up. 

On one side, I want to go with him. 

On the other, there's something weird about the Marauders.

I nod. 

Well, that'll be interesting.


	5. Pair Assignment

The Marauders surely need to be studied by science. 

There is something wild... Something dangerous about them that seems to attract girls like a magnet. Why someone would be attracted to danger is out of my capability of thought.

They don't even seem normal at first sight, a bunch of boys laughing and making jokes SHOULD seem normal, but with them, it doesn't. There's just this... Aura. This glow around them. They look so special, so amazing.

Yet, they kinda freak me out.

I fail to understand why whoever is responsible for making our class schedule would put all four Marauders in the same class, especially when it comes to Divination, which is by far the least respected class in school. 

As expected, the walk to Divination with Remus was as awkward as destiny would allow it. His friends followed behind us, James annoying a pretty pissed Lily and Sirius a little bit too close for my liking, they all making comments about weather that seemed to be a distraction.

Remus tried to start a conversation more than once. Poor thing, he's not the first to try making me talk, and certainly won't be the last. But there's something about him, something about his eyes, his personality, that tells me he won't give up so easily. 

And I kinda hope he doesn't.

Thankfully, Lily decided to end the Awkward-Fest and sat with me on the tiny table in the front, forcing Remus to sit with Sirius, on the table next to us. James, of course, chose the table on our other side, and Peter followed him.

He sent a flying note to Lily, and I assumed it wouldn't be the last.

I was right.

Thirty notes. THIRTY. How can he even write that much during class? How is it possible that he has SO MANY important topics to discuss with Lily? She didn't actually read any of them, but I just assumed they were important, because of the hurt puppy face he did every time she tore the notes to pieces.

Lily rolls her eyes as she tears the last note, glancing back at her teacup, a confused look on her face.

I smile, Lily is smart, indeed, but she seems to have trouble with things that involve more than a practical, exact solution. Divination is one of these things, it is a class that involves heart, passion and time, you can't just math your way out of it.

I start writing down some notes about what I see, then I compare them to the images on my book and write their meanings on the parchment. Much too early, our Professor dismisses us, requesting our notes from this class to be left on her table.

Lily looks scared for a second until James chuckles and hands her a parchment with all the notes she should've taken, in HER handwriting! Sorry, but if this isn't love then I don't know what is!

Lily blushes, madly, until her face is the same colour as her hair, and leaves the parchment on the table. She then gets up on her toes and kisses James on the cheek, before quickly grabbing me by the arm and walking away at a furiously fast pace. 

I look at her with a smirk as we arrive The Great Hall, Lily shaking her head and muttering: "Don't you even." before she finds us a seat as far away from the Marauders as possible. 

Lunch went annoyingly.

Khalia, of course, spent the whole Lunch dripping herself on The Marauders. Shaking her hair and giggling like a five-year-old. Do you know what makes me angry? She's a woman, capable of making her own decisions and living life as she pleases, and I shouldn't hate her, but it's just... She's so mean, so annoyingly mean and capable of getting boys to do anything she wants! It's just not fair.

I sigh as I see Khalia laying her head on James' shoulder. Lily seems to notice too, as her eyes don't seem to leave them. I poke her lightly and shake my head at her, as if saying 'don't worry'. She nods and goes back to her food.

As I finish my lunch, I look at her and gestured for her to wait. 

"Bathroom?" She asks. I nod. "Okay, I'll wait."

And so the cycle repeats itself. 

Kneel, put the finger in the mouth, relief. 

Kneel, finger, relief.

And so it goes.

After Lunch, I got separated from Lily, who had Arithmancy, and happily walked to my DADA class. Is it weird that it is one of my favourite classes?

I was pretty sure nothing could make DADA bad... Until I saw who was in there.

Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and... Khalia Tonks. 

Just my luck. 

Professor Galatea Merrythought, our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, is one of the loveliest ladies you'll ever meet... Until she starts teaching.

I think that's why I love her so much. She has this cute exterior, but she's still a fierce, brave woman, who doesn't take shit from anyone. Word is, she was the teacher of Albus Dumbledore AND Horace Slughorn! Also, some people whisper that she was the one who first taught Tom Riddle about the Dark Arts, but that's just a rumour.

Luckily, Miss Merrythought, as most Professors, always saved me a seat, but today, she did more than that. She arranged the seats.

"Miss Granbell, you'll be sitting in the front, as always." I smile, walking to the front and almost falling as Khalia puts her foot in front of me, in a very childish move.

The class laughs, and I blush madly as I sit down and start organizing my stuff. 

"Mister Black, you'll be sitting next to Miss Granbell." I freeze.

Oh, hell to the no. 

How can she put me with Black? SHE KNOWS I DON'T SPEAK. And the only thing Black knows how to do well is SPEAK. Merlin, this is not happening.

"Hey, there!" Sirius says as he sits beside me, throwing his arms around me and hugging me tightly.

I gasp, glaring at him and making sure to move my chair a little bit further away.   
Khali was assigned to sit with Remus, which, for some reason, annoyed the shit out of me. Probably because I know she'll use him as a puppet and then throw him in the bin like she always does. And Remus is sweet, he's a nice person and he doesn't deserve that.

Unfortunately, Khalia and Remus are assigned to the seats right on my left, so I can literally see them at all times, and so can Professor Merrythought and Sirius.

I shake my head and focus on Professor Merrythought, as she starts talking about Magical Creatures that can't be controlled. She assigns us a few pages on the book before sitting on her desk and looking at us.

"Well, kids. Now for the most important. To start the year with a good feeling, I'm assigning pairs to work together on a Class Project. Five feet long parchment and oral presentation about Magical Creatures. You'll work with the person sitting next to you." Great.

"Yay, this is gonna be so much fun." Khali says, excitedly twirling her hair between her fingers, a smirk on her lips as she stares at Remus.

I look down in anger, holding my breath and counting to three to stop my hair from going red.

"Miss Granbell, Mister Black, pick a number between 1 and 30." Professor Merrythought says.

I look at Black and write down 'pick anything' on a piece of parchment. He nods. "Seven, Professor." 

I clench my jaw, I should've said, 'any number but seven'. I hate this number, I have my reasons. 

"Great, the two of you will be talking about werewolves."

Oh, that's great. 

First, she puts me to work with Sirius.

Then, she puts Remus and Miss Perfect together.

And now, I have to stand before this stupid class of stupid teenagers and present a project about the worst creatures that ever walked on earth.

Werewolves.

Well, at least Sirius seems as uncomfortable as I am.


	6. Writing

Professor Merrythought's assignments were never easy, but, usually, she allowed me to only hand her the essay and make a 5-minute presentation to Dumbledore, who then wrote everything I said down on parchment and handed it to Merrythought.

But not this time, no. 

Honestly, what is wrong with her? Is this some kind of game? What, does she think that by assigning me to work with Sirius Black on an oral presentation I'll finally say my first words inside her classroom? Well, if that's what she thinks, she couldn't be more wrong.

After classes end, I decide to run to Dumbledore's chambers, since he's the only one who can help me now. I knock lightly on the door, and my answer comes immediately. "Come in." Says his low voice. I slowly walk into the room, only to find not only Dumbledore, but Professor Merrythought and Professor McGonagall. 

Professor McGonagall is my favourite teacher. She is kind, lovely and very understanding of my situation. Even though I have never said a word to her, she understands, and never insisted on trying to make me speak.

"I'm afraid I'm already aware of the situation, Miss Granbell." Dumbledore says. 

I bite my lip, glancing at McGonagall, she smiles sweetly at me, the lovable smile my mother never gave me, but her words cut me like knives. "There's nothing we can do, darling."

I almost gasp. Nothing they can do? There's always something they can do, right? 

My heart beats fast like a sledgehammer, gathering all the courage I have left, which isn't much actually, I slowly part my lips open as my eyes get stuck on Professor Merrythought. "W-why?" I ask, my throat dry.

Silence falls into the room. Professor Merrythought and Professor McGonagall stare at me in shock, like I'm some sort of alien from another dimension. When they finally realize I won't say anything else, Merrythought starts speaking. "I am deeply sorry, Miss Granbell. But Miss Khali Tonks approached me right before class to talk about the fact that you never seem to do oral presentations, just like everyone else. According to her, it was unfair, and she was ready to take this matter to the Education Board of the Ministry. Professor Dumbledore told me about your rare condition, and I couldn't risk the Ministry knowing about your undocumented birth." She explains.

I bite my lip, I want to cry. Cry as hard and as loud as I can, but I can't. "We know you don't want to speak, darling. But Miss Merrythought seems to be up for a deal." Professor McGonagall says. 

I look at Merrythought, a deal? "Yes." The Professor starts. "You will only need to stand in front of the class and project a voice with this." She says, handing me a big suitcase.   
I frown, placing it on the floor and opening it to find a white typing machine. I remember reading about those, they were used in the mid-1800s to tape messages without actually revealing a person's voice. I had never seen one in person, but now, given the situation, it seems like the best thing in the world. Of course, I had asked my mother for one of those in the past, but, according to her, 'it's too heavy for me to be carrying around whenever I wanna speak", and, now that I'm actually able to hold one, I couldn't agree more. 

I look up at Professor Merrythought and smile at her, smile more than I have ever smiled in my life. "T-t-thank y-you." I manage to squeak out. 

She smiles back, walking to me and placing a warm hand on my shoulder. "You're welcome, my child."

As I walk back to the Gryffindor Common Room, I feel like a huge weight was just lifted from my shoulders, while another one was put on. Of course, now I can find a way to speak during the presentation, but, through all my years in Hogwarts, I never had to perform a presentation in front of my class. You see, I'm not really good with people, especially standing in front of people while they judge me.

When I was younger, my mother tried to put me in ballet lessons, but I froze once I realized there would be other kids in there with me, what if I made a mistake in front of them? However, since I showed an exquisite ability to dance, my teacher convinced my mother to hire a teacher for private lessons, and dance has been my refuge since then, and let's just say I really needed a place to escape to growing up. 

Back to the previous matter, how am I gonna stand in front of the class, presenting my assignment, without throwing up? I mean, there's a reason why I never stood up to Khali, and, yeah, part of it was because I don't speak, but the other part was because I'm not able to stand up to anyone, not even myself.

I type the password to the Fat Lady and walk into the Common Room, expecting to be alone with my thoughts since its dinner time, but instead finding Lily and the Marauders waiting for me. 

They all turn their heads when I walk in, and Lily comes rushing to me. "There you are, I was so worried! Sirius told me what happened with Merrythought..." 

I feel like there's a slug stuck in my throat, and, again, I feel the need to just sit down and cry about my poor socialization skills. But I don't, instead, I nod slowly and show Lily the suitcase. "What's that?" She asks.

I walk to the couch, the one the Marauders aren't using, and slowly open the suitcase, taking the heavy, white, metal thing out of it. Almost immediately, Lily blurts a shocked noise. "Is this a typing machine? Where did you even get one of those?"

 _Miss Merrythought gave me._ I type. _For the oral presentation._

"That is a scary voice, mate." Peter Pettigrew says and I blush. 

"Shut up, Peter." Remus says, making me smile a little at him.

"That's brilliant! I can't believe she would even do that, I mean, she always seemed kinda evil to me, to be honest... But that's really nice of her!" 

"Unless its hoaxed and it's gonna hoax you and force you into opening a secret chamber and help to make an evil guy come to life again but killing students." James says and Lily raises her eyebrows at him. "I read that in a book once." He shrugs. 

_Pretty sure it isn't hoaxed, Potter, but thanks for the warning anyway._ I type, smirking up at him. He chuckles. _Sirius? Is it okay if we start researching and rehearsing for the presentation tomorrow after class? I gotta finish some homework and go to bed now, I'm wicked tired._

"Sure thing, doll face." He winks at me and I blush, facing down as I try my best to control my hair from changing. I decided to put my machine back in the suitcase and start walking to my room before I have to deal with any more accidents.

"Peri?" Remus calls and I instantly turn around. I look at him, waiting for him to say anything. He walks closer, his hand taking hold of my curly hair and putting a lock behind my ear. "I know you'll do great, with or without the machine." 


End file.
